Scenes from an oxytocin party

I don't know if this is real or not, but here is a video of a purported oxytocin party, where people take tablets of oxytocin, the love and trust hormone.

Oxytocin has been in the press quite a bit in the last few years with nicknames like the bonding hormone, the trust hormone and the cuddle drug. Many studies have expanded our knowledge of the effects of oxytocin beyond its most known synthetic form Pitocin, given to induce labor in pregnant women.

Literally translated in Greek to “quick birth,” the neurotransmitter oxytocin (ox-ee-TOE-sin) is naturally released in women’s bodies during childbirth, breastfeeding, nipple stimulation and orgasm. It is found in equal amounts in both men and women but its affects are felt more by women because of their levels of estrogen and prolactin, which increase the effects. Testosterone in men has the opposite effect, in turn negating many of the effects of oxytocin.

Its presence in the body is associated with an increase in recognizing facial cues, bonding, the reduction of anxiety and an overall increase in levels of trust. As part of its anti-anxiety effects, it also helps relax and reduce blood pressure and cortisol levels. In men’s, oxytocin may facilitate healthy erections and sperm ejaculation.

Another coin on the ‘oxytocin can’t be taken orally’ pile. You can only snort it or inject it.

I have snorted it, and it is pretty sweet. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy in your head. Also, your threshold for pain is about doubled. Oxytocin + sex = fun. But, it’s almost unnoticeable if it’s not in combination. Maybe a light, dizzy, relaxed feeling. Certainly nothing to have a party over. Also, that’s the female experience. The male experience is much more mild/subtle.

Re: #47, In the reference you cited about compounds diffusing across the blood brain barrier they are all relatively small molecules with cross-sectional areas under 80 angstroms. Oxytocin is a 9 amino acid peptide… It is significantly larger than this.

It also makes me wonder why so many people are trying to make small molecule agonists of the oxytocin receptor if the regular peptide(s) have the pharmokinetics and bioavailability they want.

Sublingual oxytocin administration has definitely not been shown to have an effect on the central nervous system, despite the mentioned ‘quick’ absorption. Your conjecture is, unfortunately, false.

Intranasal administration of oxytocin, as you have said, does have a central nervous system effect. This is definitely not what is shown in the video of this ‘party’.

This is completely fake. As many people have said, oxytocin won’t cross the blood brain barrier . It is a peptide, a short chain of proteins (big), and needs active transport beyond simple diffusion.

If anyone is interested in real (peer reviewed, in real journals) studies on the effects of oxytocin that actually makes it into the central nervous system, see below. Sorry about the length of the URLs.

I have been squirting liberal doses of oxytocin up my nose for a couple of years now. Not on a regular basis, but when I feel I could do with social lubricant, I reach for the atomizer. My dad belives it helped him recover from a recent divorce.

These people are not swallowing the lozenges, they’re holding them under the tongue. This area provides quick absorption into the blood stream. Because it’s so close to the nose and has similar tissue, I think it is possible that there might be an effect on the brain, but this is conjecture.

In any case, oxytocin has strong effects as a hormone traveling through the bloodstream, where it certainly goes via sublingual administration: relaxation, calming, reduction of pain — all of which would make someone more open to others, I’d think.

I’m pretty sure the “Liquid Trust” stuff is a scam. I contacted them to determine the potency of the stuff, in their reply they refused to state how much, if any, oxytocin was in their product:

“Thank you for your interest in Liquid Trust. It is a trade secret what the formula and the specific dose of Oxytocin is in our product similar to coca cola and it’s soda formula.”

I replied with the not-stunning information that
Coca-Cola has a very specific and well known amount of caffiene, a regulated drug, in its product and that it is trivial to find this information on the Internet. Surely oxytocin, a prescription-only drug, must also be required to state the quantity of the active ingredient?

I received no reply. My conclusion: liquid trust contains effectively no oxytocin, and is merely a homeopathic scam.

I couldn’t watch past the repeated lozenger references… but, this looks like a very promising hormone replacement therapy. When you wean a child, especially after two years + of solid feed on demand, your oxytocin levels are, naturally, going to plunge. This explains so much.

This is bunk. Firstly, the guy giving it out is a “licensed homeopathic doctor”? Homeopathy is complete bunk. Firstly it relies on “like cures like” and secondly the idea that the more dilute the active ingredient is, the more effective it is.

I also am a licensed homeopathic doctor. I went to 2 hours of medical school, making me 4000x as potent as a normal doctor. You must understand, however, this special potency will require assessment of an additional fee. Thank you for your time.

They just discovered that oxytocin is also responsible for intensifying envy and jealousy… didn’t read it all but I’d say it has to do with not only emotional bonding, but characteristics that would protect that bond… hence, envy and jealousy.

this is silly. oxytocin doesn’t cross the blood-brain barrier. it can be taken nasally (as reported in “Oxytocin increases trust in humans”, three spray pumps into each nostril, Kosfeld et. al. 2005 in “Nature”) but it’s nothing but a placebo if you try to eat it.

I came to the comments specifically to poke fun about the “lozenger” pronunciation but it seems about a dozen people beat me to it. I thought at first she just goofed, but then it happened again. And again.

From the comments, however, the only mention of homeopathic anything has to do with the consultation, not with the lozenGE necessarily. I’d like to try one of these purported over-the-counter varieties and see what happens, because I do not at all find myself suggestible.

What /is/ interesting, though, is how taste-makers (either manufactured, or spontaneously because of shared interests and locales) actively search out these sorts of things to experiment with them. This was the roots of the LSD and “designer-drug” parties in the past.

An extreme example might be represented in “Phenethylamines I Have Known And Loved: A Chemical Love Story” but there is also a very good history of LSD that finishes up with a chapter on the (then) new designer drugs like Adam and Ecstasy. I’ve obviously eaten way too many mushrooms, because I can’t remember the title of the last one.

There is no magic method for having a good time, even if you use science and biology. They mention nipple play in the first sentence. My husband does this for me sometimes. If it weren’t for the effect it has on him, it would do nothing for me. Everyone is different.